Church of St Michael & All Angels, Waterford, Hertfordshire
Address
St Michael & All Angels, High Road, Waterford, Hertfordshire, SG14 2PSRecommended by
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St Cecelia window at the west end of the north wall of the naveArtist, maker and date
Designed by Harry Clarke in 1921 and executed freely from the cartoon by Karl Parsons at Lowndes & Drury, 1929Reason for highlighting
An outstanding window not only of great technical skill but also great artistic merit, that being placed opposite the porch, makes a dramatic entrance to the nave.
Artist/maker notes
Henry Patrick ‘Harry’ Clarke (1889-1931) was born in Dublin and apprenticed in his father’s stained glass business. He also studied at the Metropolitan School of Art, Dublin, as well as travelling to London and France. In the process he absorbed the qualities of the medieval glaziers, along with contemporary artistic themes to create windows that are some of the most distinctive examples of the art.
Sources:
Harry Clarke: The Life & Work by Nicola Gordon Bowe, The History Press Ltd, Revised, Updated Edition, 2012
Harry Clarke and Artistic Visions of the New Irish State, Edited by Angela Griffiths, Marguerite Helmers & Róisín Kennedy, Irish Academic Press, 2019
Karl Bergemann Parsons (1884-1934) was born in Peckham, south London, and, like his friend Edward Woore, graduated in his craft from Christopher Whall’s studio, which he had joined directly from school. Having completed his apprenticeship he remained with Whall until setting up his own studio at The Glass House in 1908. During this time he was able to work with Whall on some of his most important commissions, including the windows of the Lady Chapel at Gloucester Cathedral, and also supplying some drawings for Whall’s book ‘Stained Glass Work’ (1905).
Parson’s time with Whall included attending Whall’s classes at the Central School of Arts & Crafts, where he himself would subsequently teach. He also taught at the Royal College of Art.
Parson’s style evolved noticeably from the mid-1920 following a visit to Chartres Cathedral and under the influence of his friend, Harry Clarke. His sometime pupil and later assistant, E Liddall Armitage commented some years later that “He was an extremely competent designer, an excellent draughtsman and a fine colourist.”
Sources:
Arts & Craft Stained Glass by Peter Cormack (Yale University Press, 2015)
Stained Glass – History, Technology and Practice by E Liddall Armitage (Leonard Hill (Books) Ltd, 1960)
Lowndes & Drury was formed in 1897, by the artist Mary Lowndes (1857-1929) and the craftsman Alfred John Drury (1868-1940), with the aim of providing facilities for independent artists to design and make stained glass windows. They moved from cramped conditions in Chelsea to newly purpose-built premises, The Glass House, Fulham in 1906. The firm continued after the founders’ deaths, under Alfred Drury’s son, Victor, until he retired in the early 1970s. However, The Glass House premises continued in use under Carl Edwards and subsequently his daughter, Caroline Benyon, until she moved her studio to Hampton in 1992.
Source: The Journal of Stained Glass, Vol. XLI, 2017
Other comments
The church has a wealth of fine stained glass in addition to the above, including, immediately to the east of the St Cecelia window, a window telling the story of the road to Emmaus by the great Scottish artist, Douglas Strachan 1928.
It is followed by a two-light window on the Parable of The Wise Virgins, designed by Selwyn Image and made by Heaton, Butler & Bayne, 1890. A cooler window after the fire of Parson’s window, but equally engaging. Image’s debt to the William Morris firms is clear, as can be seen by studying their work elsewhere in the church.
Amongst the windows made by Morris, Marshall, Faulkner & Co. of particular note is the window in the south wall that depicts the Prophetess Miriam. It was designed by Edward Burne-Jones, 1872, and a note next to the window records that the writer, photographer and broadcaster, Lucinda Lambton thought it was among the best 12 stained glass windows in England.